


home is where they say the heart is (mine's buried in the yard)

by acenhypen



Series: sunseung/heesun one shots [3]
Category: ENHYPEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, M/M, Oneshot, a romeo and juliet-ish story?, but this is a fast burn lmao, eclipse - Freeform, enhypen with powers, i basically wrote what is supposed to be in the notes in the tags lol, i miss them again, inspired by heesun's other ship name, might make it multi-chaptered in the future, slow burn > fast burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-12
Updated: 2021-03-12
Packaged: 2021-03-19 10:35:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,133
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29998068
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/acenhypen/pseuds/acenhypen
Summary: heeseung and his friends venture to the enemies' lair.
Relationships: Kim Sunoo/Lee Heeseung
Series: sunseung/heesun one shots [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2174451
Comments: 11
Kudos: 29





	home is where they say the heart is (mine's buried in the yard)

**Author's Note:**

> i have been heavily inspired lately skskkksksk
> 
> made a fanvid and finished this oneshot hahaha, expect me to suddenly not update jk unless... 👀
> 
> anyways, i am not fond of fast burns and i suck at them but i was inspired by an idea from my friend about eclipses and hey, i thought why not make a romeo and juliet-themed oneshot, star-crossed lovers and all that

when life bloomed in the barren land called the earth, the celestial beings were at peace and their children prospered with harmony and order.

there was the sun and the moon. day and night. hot and cold. light and dark.

there was balance.

but like any other story, chaos disrupted that balance, tipping the world over its edge.

the sun thought of itself and its children as superior beings and so, desired full, unshared power over the north and south and anything that sees the light of day and the black of night.

in order to take that power, war must take place.

the moon was furious and cunning. it knew of the strength the sun has with fire running in its veins and the dauntless brawn of its children.

it did not desire violence but bargain. an accord.

yet war was inevitable.

the sun, with its huge army, came with blazing fire and roaring hearts to ambush the unsuspecting moon clan. or so they thought.

what the moon and its children lack in strength, they are abundant in wisdom and guile.

on a fateful day, the moon clan met the force of the sun tribe with equal fervor, creating machines of war to outsmart and overpower the might of the enemies.

the war lasted for continuous days and nights, through heat and cold. not one surrendered even when bodies littered the soil and warm and cold blood splattered in the expanse.

madness danced in the air, walked in the earth, and swam in the sea.

mountains fell, the skies cried, and the world was engulfed in both fire and water.

amidst it all, the very soul residing within the world and binding the beings to life felt the disruption the two sides have provoked.

it felt itself losing its beauty, crumbling to pieces, threatening extinction, and nearing its own demise.

the soul became angry and in an attempt of self-preservation, it bellowed deep from its pits and split the world cleanly into half.

the soul separated the battling tribes and ended the war destroying the very earth.

and so one side became dark, cold, and tranquil while the other bright, warm, and restless.

the two tribes were never permitted to enter the other's domain, an empty space lingering between the two sides.

the feud and rivalry continued and may never stop till the end of time.

however, the soul sensed the longing of a few offspring of both sun and moon and grew sad. it seems like despite the bad blood, there are still traces of what once was peace between the sun and the moon.

heart kind and forgiving, the soul took pity on the members of both tribes and created a bridge in the vast nothingness connecting north and south.

from that day on, every half of a decade, the world forces the sun and moon to meet on the central bridge, a veil of connectedness, opening the barriers from both sides. this phenomenon is known as an _eclipse._

rules have been established that not one being is permitted to cross the bridge completely and go to the opposite side for disaster and hatred for each other still controlled the minds of most beings.

the eclipse lasts for 77 minutes and if one is not able to get off the bridge by the time it ends, they will be stuck in time and space until the next eclipse.

in the many years that have come, the moon tribe prospered under the light of their moon. its children multiplied and---

heeseung shuts the man-sized book close and lets his head drop on its cover, sighing blearily.

white frost floats in the air from the breath he exhaled through his nose and heeseung watches as a snowflake sways until it lands lifelessly on his equally cold arm.

what was he doing here again?

oh, right. the eclipse.

jaeyun has been pestering him ever since to search thoroughly about the eclipse coming in a few days. the younger says packing up knowledge is most appropriate when venturing to unfamiliar ground.

in the event of the eclipse, heeseung and his friends, jaeyun and sunghoon, would go to the bridge and see for themselves what the children of the sun look like. the illustrations in the books described them as having fire in their skin and in the eyes, bearing fangs, and not to mention, utterly stupid and dangerous.

"they are most likely going to be scarier in person." he mutters to himself, sending an ineffective chill down his spine.

the idea of such monsters residing in the face of the earth after what they have done to his clan really makes heeseung think going to the bridge is not a good idea. the chance of violating rules is the last thing he would ever want. would not want to get his tongue frozen in his mouth like old man taehyung did. he can't also risk coming in contact with those sun monsters because they might inflict harm on him, considering how dangerous they are.

his eyes flit to the window just a few feet from where he is currently sitting and sees the moon at its peak, shining brightly and serving as the only illumination in the whole north.

on the third night of the week, the moon will go to the farther end of the land, where the border is and their area will succumb to darkness. this will force everyone, even those who have a deep spite for the sun and its children, to come closer to where the central bridge is located.

heeseung hates what this eclipse brings to them. danger and anxiety would hang in the cold breeze because in those 77 minutes, anything can happen. who knows what those mindless monsters can do and who says a rule can stop them from possibly causing trouble here?

still, meeting the children of the sun is intriguing. it is after all a gift (or curse) of insatiable hunt for knowledge the moon children possess.

aside from the evident atrocity in their physical appearance, the sun children are described as having warmth. heeseung does not know what warmth is. nor what the 'heat' means.

maybe he will know and he will be the judge whether he will still prefer the cold or not.

* * *

a slap to the back of his head brings sunoo out of his daydreaming.

he exclaims in surprise and as retribution, throws a handful of sand at his assailant's face.

jongseong falls over on his bottom, shouting colorful words and rubbing sand off of his fiery red locks.

sunoo barks out a laugh as he watches his older brother seethe on the ground like an eel splashed with salt.

"you've blinded me, sunoo!"

"that is for sneaking up on me!"

"oh, you little---"

sunoo knows better than to underestimate jongseong's speed yet he could not help but try and flee to no avail.

the wind is knocked out of his chest when his much broader and heavier brother tackles him to the sandy ground. sunoo squirms under jongseong's hold but the older has put him in a headlock.

their laughter echoes in the glade, disturbing the birds and small critters in the forest. their ma will not be pleased with them dirtying their clothes and messing around instead of preparing for the party later.

sunoo's shoulders sag at the reminder of what awaits him on the celebration.

"you make yourself vulnerable to attacks whenever you stay in that head of yours." jongseong chides as he pulls him off the floor.

sunoo flicks sand at him playfully. "who is going to attack me? the moon children?"

jongseong shrugs, jaw clenched. "the eclipse is in a few hours, sun. who knows what those cold-blooded fiends have under their sleeves."

"hyung, you do know we have rules. besides, if something does happen, they are no match to the forces under your command."

"you damn flatterer." sunoo giggles as his brother reddens at the compliment.

sunoo is not worried about the moon children. from what he has heard, they are exceptionally smart and surely they know not to walk through fire.

* * *

"i've heard far more idiotic things but i must say stupidity has no limits and spares no one." sunghoon remarks once jaeyun has finished relaying his plan out to him and heeseung.

heeseung snickers at the back of his hand but stops when jaeyun punches him on the shoulder.

the shortest of the three slams a hand on the piece of parchment laid out atop the table. "believe me. this will work."

"do you wish to never speak again, jaeyun? we will be punished for breaking the rules or worse, killed by the sun children once they recognize us." sunghoon hisses, his cold breath materializing in the air.

jaeyun shakes his head with a smile, "that is why we have this." he holds up a small vial the size of a thumb, filled with a glittering substance heeseung recognizes as moondust.

"with a few additions, i have created a charm which masks our true identity and disguises us in the eyes of the sun children as their own. we would not even be melted by the sun because of the eclipse."

heeseung raises an eyebrow, curiosity piqued. he briefly glances at sunghoon and smirks when he sees the younger boy's eyes flash with intrigue. them moon children really are in love with knowledge. sometimes too in love.

"and if that does work, how do you think we will be able to get past the bridge, hmm?"

_good point, sunghoon._

heeseung lightly raps the table to call their attention. "my cousin, jungwon, is part of the guard overseeing the eclipse later. he may know something. there must be a fault in that bridge, there always is."

turns out heeseung was right and by the time the moon is halfway to the border, the trio have come to an agreement to sneak in after a minute in the pretense of volunteering to help jungwon's unit of troops. heeseung's cousin swore to keep quiet, knowing heeseung holds high power over him, being the chief's son and all.

"hyung, i'm surprised you're coming. this plan is too dangerous." sunghoon tells him as they trek through the winter forest. "our clan might---"

"for once, i do not want to care about what our clan might think, sunghoon. i really want to go see the south."

"are you sure this is not just an act to purposely stain your reputation?"

heeseung looks away from the younger as they continue to walk. their bare feet sink on the snow yet the cold is harmless. it is familiar. violent and icy winds strike into their bones but the trio embraced the cold with the very ice their lives are chiseled from. darkness looms over their heads and heeseung thanks their moon for giving them eyes which can see with or without light.

he adjusts his cloak to cover the pale color of their clothes which identifies their lineage. the sun's children would easily pick them over the crowd of red and brown if they don't keep their clothing hidden.

"i don't know what being warm is. do you?"

sunghoon looks at heeseung, lip pressed to a thin line. he shakes his head.

"besides, jaeyun's plans work most of the time. don't they, jaeyun?" heeseung calls out to the loner walking ahead of them.

jaeyun looks back at the two as he continues to walk, eyes bright but heeseung's observant nature spots a hint of insecurity there. he should know that look, he always sees that when his face reflects on the mirror. when his mother chastises him for not having his back straightened or when he receives a cold, steely stare from his father.

"when did i ever fail you two?"

"are you certain you want to hear the answer to that?"

their breathy laughter is drowned out by the impending doom their not so little mischief may cause.

heeseung wonders if the sun's people are fond of having guests.

* * *

"your mother would not be pleased with your face looking like that."

sunoo moves to touch his face, frowning. "what's wrong with my face?"

his handmaiden --- an old woman of utter patience and stealthy hands --- clicks her tongue before evenly grabbing his arm to prevent him from tainting the powdered foundation she has applied on his face.

"you are beautiful but wrinkles will form if you keep up the long face, dear boy."

sunoo huffs, wanting to scowl deeper just to spite her and his ma. it is not like riki has a choice of the partner he will be taking once he comes of age. the two of them are born to be wed, with wrinkles or not.

why does he even have to get married? especially to someone he will be meeting for the first time in the next hour.

sunoo knows _power_ is the only answer to that. merging their families guarantee control and influence to their hands and that would make them unstoppable.

power has always been the sole desire of the elders. of the children of the sun. of the sun itself.

power is the reason why they are caught in a feud with the gray-skinned offspring of the pale moon. the catalyst for the wrath of the soul residing within the earth.

and it is funny because for someone who belongs in a power-hungry tribe, sunoo feels so powerless. a puppet on strings worked by his family. his lineage.

he feels like an accessory. a mere being spat out by the sun for its own benefit.

sunoo calls his handmaiden. the old woman croaks out a hoarse response as she fluffs his pillows.

"will you be going to the bridge later?"

"yes."

sunoo's stomach drops. he had hoped he at least will have good company while people ogle at him later at the celebration.

"good for you. i, on the other hand, will be stuck pretending i'm in love with a man i have never met before."

"oh, don't fret. you are a good actor."

his mother immediately has him fetched a few minutes later and sunoo grumbles under his breath why she would not go to him herself but knows her to probably be fussing about cinches and whatnot related to the celebration.

riki was the one who took the liberty to escort him to the merriment, no doubt a way to get on sunoo's good side. again, sunoo deems it unnecessary but quite appreciates the younger boy's attempt to woo him, sincere or not. he even brought sunoo dandelions, his favorite flower.

"you look beautiful."

"thank you."

"i created my first sword today."

"that is pleasant to hear."

riki visibly sucks an irate breath at sunoo's indifference. "how about you? surely the chief has taught you, right?"

_no, he didn't._

"of course. it's tradition, riki." sunoo barely keeps his voice steady and nonchalant. the grip on the delicate flowers tightens and sunoo can feel the tickle of fire stretching out his palm and to the flowers.

his fingers unclench and the flame dies down the moment they are met with the loud and boisterous cheers of the tribe, especially from the soldiers. jongseong most likely provided them with ale and meat.

riki's hand snakes its way to rest on his hip and sunoo fights the urge to rip it off and break it. he smiles instead, falsely, tightly.

"your mother is approaching." riki signals through gritted teeth and sunoo is confused whether he should be thankful or not. he still wants his wretched hand not touching him though.

"i see you've been properly acquainted. how lovely."

sunoo's mother is a beautiful lady, wife to the chief and constant reminder to sunoo that he has responsibilities to make up for being the chief's runt. the chief's mistake.

"riki was just here telling me about the sword he crafted earlier, ma."

"hmm, has he?"

as expected, sunoo's ma looks to riki for confirmation, clearly having no trust in sunoo and not even bothering to disguise it.

"it was a lovely sword. i plan to show it to my darling hyung sometime. let's say, tomorrow?"

"i probably cannot wait till then."

pleased that the two youngsters seem to be getting along well, sunoo's mother allows a smile in her strawberry tinted mouth. she shoots sunoo a pointed look before turning on her heels and joining the raucous people.

oh how sunoo wishes something, anything is going to kill that fire seemingly burning around him for even just a short while.

* * *

heeseung is starting to digest just how terrible this idea is. it is absolutely mad. embarking on a journey through the lion's den? heeseung thought with possessing wit and knowledge, they'd know better. guess not.

but setting aside the utter absurdity of the whole plan, heeseung allows himself to indulge in the new, unfamiliar environment.

the south is nothing like he imagined it to be. he always thought of it as a barren land with only fire and chaos ever present. a space for war and destruction.

heeseung did not expect it to look almost the same as the land they are living in. it has the same geography as their south. it has trees, tall ones, and it also allows shelter for various animals, some heeseung has not even seen before.

it has life. full of it.

the huge distinctive factor is all this bright light. the lack of snow-covered surfaces. this overwhelming sensation prickling at his skin. he cannot put a finger on whatever it is but it definitely is not cold. is this what the heat is? he is not certain. for the first time since the moon laid him down on the ground, heeseung has no idea of what is around him.

"look at that, sunghoon!" jaeyun exclaims from ahead of him, clinging onto sunghoon in excitement as he spots anything new to their eyes.

"i did not know the south is so... inhabitable." sunghoon says aloud, awe in his voice. "it's full of life, just like the north."

they have yet to see a child of the sun since they have not reached the clearing, weaving through the vibrant green trees and encountering critters along the way.

"i wonder if the people really have the face of fire as they say in the books."

he just hopes they will find out before the 77 minutes pass.

it did not take long for them to see one, or a ton to be exact. it seems like a celebratory gathering is being held by the sun's people. for what, heeseung did not know nor could he care less.

a dangerous and elevated element hovering and engulfing a pile of logs is situated in the middle of the clearing. like an idol to be worshiped. heeseung knew it is what the sun children called _fire_ from the books.

and just like in the books, heeseung's eyes did not deceive him once he lays them on the beings dancing and making merry and acting like they have been possessed by a wayward demon.

unlike the pale complexion the moon children bear, the sun children looked like they are doused in fire. it covered them from head to toe.

they have limbs; two arms and two legs. they have a head and a face. but they did not look human at all.

as the illustrations portrayed, the children of the sun wore fire in their faces, their mouths enclosed fangs which look sharp enough to pierce through skin.

heeseung pulls his friends to hide behind a nearby tree, eyes scanning for unwanted attention. when he finds none and deems it safe, he turns to the younger boys.

"have we seen enough? we should go back." heeseung mutters, fear bubbling in his stomach now that they have come across the enemies. if they ever get caught, heeseung knows not one of the three of them can fight against the brute strength of the sun's people. their magic will take too much attention and they are not sure how it affects the sun's offspring.

sunghoon agrees with him but jaeyun is another case. that boy is the most hungry for knowledge especially when it comes to the unknown. "we still have half an hour and fifteen minutes. surely, we can explore more. maybe even mingle."

"are you really out of your mind? we cannot possibly mingle with them, jaeyun. their touch is like poison to our skin. one touch and you'll get burnt or worse, you'll melt."

jaeyun stands his ground, shaking off sunghoon's hand. "this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. and you said it yourself that you want to know what warmth is, right, heeseung-hyung?"

"knowledge is not worth risking our lives for, jaeyun."

"our whole lives we've been created to hunt for knowledge. to create magic and to go on adventures. is not that what being a child of the moon is all about?"

there is no use arguing with the boy. they are just wasting time and jaeyun is not keen on wasting it on fighting when they could have been finding more about the south. his love for knowledge exceeds any of those in the clan.

heeseung sighs in defeat, throwing his hands up. "half an hour then we go back."

"heeseung-hyung!"

jaeyun beams and throws sunghoon a wink before grabbing his hand to drag him to dance in the middle of the merrymaking crowd.

heeseung whispers to them while they are within distance, "i'll meet you at the bridge. be safe."

jaeyun might be excited with the idea of being great friends with the sun's people and sunghoon, being attached to his hip basically, will probably do too but not heeseung.

no, he is both scared and smart about this. he knows there must be some way to know what warmth is without coming into contact with those people.

so he makes for the woods.

* * *

sunoo has been smiling for hours now and truth be told, he feels his face slowly ripping apart with the false courtesies.

every hand he shook said the same empty words to him before they go on to riki who has been lingering by his side like a stupid bug.

'your marriage would be of great service to the tribe.'

sunoo cannot suffer any longer amidst his surroundings. if he stayed just a bit longer, the edges of the elderly's robes will 'accidentally' catch fire. truth be told, sunoo will probably create a massive fire once he starts and he would not want to be blamed for disruption of fun or he will expect himself a week long of withering gazes from his mother and another ounce of his value lost to his father.

he has to go, for both his sake and the celebration's. it would be easier to explain his disappearance rather than the sudden demise of one of the elderly people.

"where are you going?" riki blocks his path, emphasizing his advantage in both strength and size.

sunoo meets his gaze, firm and unbreaking. "i'll be going on a walk."

"let me come with you."

"don't worry, riki. i will be telling my mother how charming and attentive you are by the end of the day. are you satisfied?"

"fine."

sunoo deliberately rolls his eyes and regrets ever thinking the boy can actually be sincere. still, he does not mind. sunoo could not care less himself. all he wants to do is get away from this strangling atmosphere.

his feet take him to the forest, his favorite part of the south. the air there is calmer and quieter.

sunoo whistles a tune to himself and softly smiles when the birds sing back to him. even the crickets make a welcoming sound as sunoo treks through the giant, unmoving trees.

the sky is a little dark, a result of the sun's departure to the border, and sunoo realizes that this is the closest he can see of what the heavens might look like on the other side.

sunoo cannot fathom the idea of living in darkness without facing the light of day. it evokes a feeling of sadness in him and he wonders if any of the moon children are happy there or are they as pitiful and inhumane as the elders say.

if so, then why does the earth even allow them to see each other during eclipse? why do some of his tribal brothers and sisters establish relationships with those pale, cold-blooded species?

his parents forbid him to ever go within distance the bridge and the ever obedient son, sunoo keeps the promise. besides, what is the use of befriending the pale people when there could be nothing more to them than seeing each other through a veil?

he stops walking upon hearing the calm ripple of water in the lone river at this side of the forest.

 _a nice swim would be best,_ he thinks to himself.

with a skip to his step, sunoo makes for the body of water with the intention of relaxing himself from the distress brought about by his very own tribe.

he makes a survey of the area for any signs of life and finds only a few harmless critters loitering about. sunoo heaves a pleased sigh and sheds off his garments, leaving only his underpants.

he tests the water first and slightly shivers at the decrease in its usual temperature. this must be how the lack of heat feels, biting and uncomfortable to the bones. he does not like it.

producing fire in his palm, sunoo hovers his hand above the water to give it more heat because he is in no way going into the water with its temperature low.

once satisfied, sunoo dips one leg first, grinning at the warm sensation climbing and covering him.

then, he dives and lets the water wash away all his worries and responsibilities.

the relaxing sensation of swimming did not last long when sunoo's ears pick up on an unusual sound, rapid and ragged breathing. children of the sun do not ever get tired. the sun made sure all of its children are immune to any weaknesses.

alert, sunoo sneakily maneuvers to the huge rock by the river to hide and keep watch of the possible intruder. he can't believe jongseong was right. the moon children are here.

he lifts his head from the water as he positions himself behind the rock, thankful of his small figure.

the breathing sounded like it came from the north side of the forest, opposite to where sunoo came from.

sunoo's eyes move about every corner of the north's direction until they fall upon a lone cloaked figure leaning against a tree, chest heaving. it is a boy. about the same age as sunoo.

he frowns when he finds the boy's cheeks flushed with red blood, not blue as expected from a moon child.

but that is not possible. no child of the sun ever falters in health physically. they can go on for days without sustenance and they can still fight and win ten wars.

sunoo did not know the answer to this for knowledge was never theirs to love and cultivate. but he does know a sun child never ignores one of his own.

"you there!" heeseung freezes at the boom of voice filling the otherwise quiet woods. he clutches at his chest tightly as his heart pounds and increases in speed, making it harder for him to catch his breath.

"can you hear me?" the voice calls again. male, heeseung notices. a little high but regardless, a male's voice.

but that does not matter. heeseung is in the enemy's territory and no other person can call him and not be a child of the sun. his luck has run out and his survival depends on his own knowledge and skills. heeseung is a firm believer of experience being a good teacher and the problem is, he has never talked to a sun child before nor had he ever dreamt of it.

the boy calls out once more, annoyance visible in his tone. heeseung ponders if that makes the sun child more dangerous, seeing it as he has angered him.

not wanting to further irritate the creature, heeseung pushes himself off the tree and fixes his gaze on the direction of the voice.

the sun child is knee deep in the river, positioned slightly behind a huge rock. he looks back at heeseung with wide eyes, watchful.

"are you alright?" the sun child asks and heeseung has to stop himself from flinching when the light is caught and shines on his fangs.

heeseung picks up on an accent and curses himself for not reading about it on the gigantic book. fortunately, his gifts include quick comprehension and mimicry.

"just catching my breath." his clan mother will murder him for sounding uncannily like the enemy.

the sun child raises a burning eyebrow and heeseung is staggeringly reminded of one of the outstanding qualities of sun children; to be invincible and healthy.

_think, heeseung, think._

"ever since our sun's absence, it is as if my whole strength has been taken with it."

he need not pretend about the pain. his face contorts in agony as his body finally responds hugely to the rapid change in his environment. jaeyun's charm can only do so much. the sun may not be here but the south itself is still vastly different from the north. he just hopes sunghoon and jaeyun are faring better than him. how stupid can this actually be? were they too blinded by their love for knowledge?

splashes of water reach his ears which fade into quick footsteps trudging to the soil as the sun child hurries to his aid. 

heeseung slides down the ground and leans back against the sturdy and uncomfortable trunk, sweat cascading down his face and his whole body. his head spins and he feels light as a feather.

his mind feels blank but he still manages to remember not to let his skin touch the sun child's. the charm jaeyun made will not work on that. heeseung still is, in bone and flesh, a moon child.

"how are you feeling?" the sun child kneels in front of him, worry in his features. heeseung has never imagined such a frightening face can hold gentle emotions.

the sun child pouts a little at heeseung's lack of response and instead, decides to try and meet his eyes.

why do those gentle eyes belong to this unforgivable creature? heeseung is slightly comforted by the fact that he will most likely die looking into eyes that are almost human and familiar. the sun child's eyes remind him of an arctic fox. at least, he can remember his home before he dies.

"don't fall asleep on me. wake up!" it was too late. before heeseung can even back away, his skin feels the littlest of touch yet it felt like his whole body was electrocuted. like he was shocked back to life. as an instinctive action, heeseung's own hand reaches out to grasp the sun child's wrist, gasping as the sun child rips his wrist from him with a jolt.

sunoo hisses as a small air of smoke overwhelms his nose, clutching his hurt arm to his chest. he panickedly looks at it and winces at the white, scathing mark of fingers encircling his wrist.

the sun's people cannot be harmed by anything except the cold, the moon and its children.

at that realization, sunoo backs away from him in fear of being burned yet the moon child does not move from his position.

"if you are going to kill me, please make it quick." the moon child pleads, head lolled.

sunoo gapes at his defeated statement. "what?"

"just make it quick." the moon child lifts his head and sunoo has to stifle a gasp when he finally sees what he really looks like. his skin was pale, almost gray and his cheeks and lips are tinted a little blue, no doubt because of the color of the blood running through his veins.

sunoo is enchanted by the being before him. his beauty is something sunoo has never seen before and now that he has, he does not think he can find someone or something more alluring. it's not just that. something in the moon child's gaze, his unguarded expression ironically makes sunoo feel the warmest and safest he has ever been since he was born.

sunoo is keen on observing the moon child he does not miss the surprise in his deep gray eyes.

heeseung blinks. once. twice. maybe thrice. he cannot believe his eyes. the same eyes he trusted his whole life to guide him. the same eyes looking now at what once was the hideous creature he has familiarized himself with yet the creature before him is far from being ugly. it is an insult to even call him anything like that.

the sun child eerily looked exactly like the people from the north except his face and lips are flushed with a strange, bright pigment, unlike the cerulean heeseung and his people wear on their skin.

he is simply beautiful. the most beautiful creature heeseung has ever laid eyes on. the only creature he can never get tired of looking at.

_is this an illusion?_

"you look like me." heeseung whispers in a trance but the sun child, with his blessed ears, catches his words clearly.

sunoo frowns at the moon child's statement, intrigued, "and you look like me. a bit different but the same."

isn't that the most preposterous thing, to find your sworn 'enemy' is almost the same as you? to find them to be most beautiful?

"aren't you supposed to be throwing fire at me already?" heeseung questions, sounding defensive despite looking and feeling helpless. he can talk smart all he wants but he is without doubt at the sun child's mercy.

"why would i do that when you have not done any harm to me at all?"

heeseung's eyes fall upon the frostbite on the sun child's arm, apologetic and remorseful.

"not intentionally, at least."

"it was cruel of me. you were trying to help and i hurt you."

"you're on enemy territory. it's normal to be violent and defensive." sunoo registers his own words and looks warily at the moon child. he may look weak and defenseless but it does not change the fact he went here in the south while it is forbidden. "what are you doing here?"

heeseung gulps at the question, feeling guilty to his stomach. "we wanted to see the south for ourselves. the sun children for that matter."

"you did not come here for war?"

"we never wanted war. it is you sun people who always want one."

sunoo does not argue with that. it's the truth. his own tribe is built for war like it was their sole purpose in living. sunoo always thought it was for good reason but looking at the moon child, he hates the sun for being power-hungry.

"why do you want to see the south?" the sun child's voice grows softer to a thoughtful, maybe even timid, tone.

"curiosity, curse of the moon children."

the sun child laughs and his laugh reminds heeseung of the bells his mother sounds everyday to call the birds. it induces a smile to his face.

sunoo raises his head to find the moon child giving him the softest of looks and his laughter falters.

something tugs at heeseung's chest and every doubt and insecurity his heart has been consumed in is overpowered by a new, foreign feeling. this new feeling of enlightenment, of completeness, of purpose, of affection as he stares deep into the sun child's fox eyes. this new feeling that no amount of knowledge can surpass. he will be damned before he ever lets anything come before the person in front of him.

sunoo allows himself to indulge in the stare the moon child is giving him. all of his days he has been finding his own purpose in this life. a purpose not forced to him by anyone, not his family nor the sun itself. and right now, looking at the moon child's face, his whole body calms and sunoo thinks that _this_ is his main purpose. to make this person his whole world.

but _no._ they both know this was doomed from the start, right before they were even born. yet that did not stop sunoo from reaching out once again, more certain and more willingly.

"no, love, you will get hurt." the moon child protests, his voice raspy, when sunoo makes a move to grasp his hand and feel his skin. 

sunoo warms at the name the moon child called him. his voice is rich with a strange drawl different from how the people speak in the south.

name. his name. sunoo does not know his name.

"your name, what is it?"

the sun child asks and heeseung blinks for a couple of seconds, suddenly feeling bashful. it did not help the boy is practically naked in front of him. the sun child must have noticed, probably from hearing his heartbeat rate pick up, and stands up and struggle to put on a shirt.

"heeseung."

"heeseung." sunoo repeats, the name strangely rolling off his tongue.

heeseung likes how he says his name.

"aren't you going to tell me yours?" sunoo lightly smiles at the teasing tone in the moon--- heeseung's voice.

heeseung really likes his smile.

"it's sunoo."

"beautiful and so is its bearer." sunoo flushes and heeseung wonders what can possibly make the boy's face brighten more than it already is. "you moon children surely have a way with your words."

"it's the only weapon we have along with our minds as compared to you sun children's brute strength and speed."

moon.

sun.

_he does not belong here._

_he is the enemy._

"you need to go back." sunoo voices out the obvious, trapping the air between them.

heeseung nods bitterly, "and i'll see you again in half a decade."

"we people of the sun are very impatient."

"see, we are not compatible at all." yet heeseung is smiling, an emotional and wistful smile.

"why didn't i think of that, moon child? we will destroy each other." sunoo nears him, delicately starting to bridge the distance between them.

"our tribes will despise us, maybe even abandon us." 

heeseung pushes himself off of the tree, steadying himself but not once breaking eye contact.

"my mother will disown me." sunoo muses, hand reaching out to brush away the displaced fringes upon heeseung's dark head.

"i might never be able to speak again when they freeze my mouth close." heeseung gently tugs at sunoo's clothed arm to pull him closer, feeling the hot water dripping down it and not giving it any heed.

sunoo's lips tug to a smirk, widening when he sees heeseung's eyes flit to it. "so you might as well speak now."

how can heeseung speak at all? when it feels as if communicating can be done through the eyes the same way sunoo is looking at him now. telling him a million words in a simple gaze.

sunoo wonders what it would be like to feel cold and would it be worth burning himself to know. his doubt vanishes into thin air when he sees the same curiosity and resolution in heeseung's stare.

too absorbed in each other's presence, they do not even realize how close their faces are. hot and cold breath mingling in the air. one step closer and they'll be touching and is not that the most wonderful thing in the world for the two of them? to be touching and feeling each other's warmth and lack of it for that matter.

"this is insane. never did i expect myself to be this close to a sun child." whispers heeseung, voice husky.

sunoo grins, "yet here you are."

"here i am." heeseung leans in and sunoo decides to meet him halfwa---

"sunoo!" the two of them part in surprise as a voice sunoo recognizes as jongseong's reaches his sharp ears in the forest.

heeseung's breath hitches and his body once more tries to give in. he really has to go back even if he desires to stay here forever.

his hand feels for his pocket watch. he has 6 minutes.

sunoo watches heeseung look and it dawns on him. "you have to go." jongseong's footsteps near them. "you have to go, heeseung."

sunoo wastes no time and grabs heeseung's cloak to drag him with him towards the bridge. 

the two ran and ran until they finally arrive near the border. a few people were still there and heeseung spots jaeyun and sunghoon lingering behind a tree, clearly waiting for him.

sadness fills sunoo and he releases heeseung's cloak and lets his hand fall limp. their eyes meet for a brief moment and heeseung knows he has foolishly, deeply, fallen in love. he might as well throw himself off a cliff now along with this forbidden attraction to sunoo.

how can they go back to their respective sides when their hearts live on the other?

"come with me, sunoo." heeseung lightly touches his hair and offers despite knowing it is impossible. they both know sunoo will not be able to take in the cold but it does not hurt to try.

sunoo shivers and a chill spikes down his veins. "i can be patient. i will wait for you."

"we can explore the north. the moon will not be there to make you feel as cold."

"i'd love that." sunoo croaks out, in the verge of tears.

heeseung offers him a small smile and sunoo will remember it for as long as he lives.

and for this short moment, this stolen moment they will keep stealing as much as they need, it is just the two of them. there is no sun nor moon. just them.

the clock ticks and time starts to run out so sunoo seizes his chances and tiptoes to capture heeseung's lips in his. heeseung reciprocates and rests his hand on his clothed waist, supporting the boy and deepening the searing kiss.

the two of them reluctantly pull away and heeseung makes sure to engrave every detail in sunoo's face as he breaks from the sun child's hold and runs.

sunoo watches him with teary eyes, already counting down the years.

heeseung's lips tingle to a burn yet he does not mind. he, after all, finally knows warmth. the cold is not as comfortable and homely as it was before. the residual warmth from sunoo's kiss would have to do. until next time.

**Author's Note:**

> this feels more like a first chapter haha
> 
> who knows?


End file.
